Last week, I was on the final leg of my meditation teacher training. And the subject of Awareness came up quite a bit, because when you meditate regularly you will naturally develop a higher sense of self-awareness.
And on the first day, as I heard the word coming up, it dawned on me: OMG, when I wrote A is for . . . to kickstart my A-Z of Happiness series, I totally forgot to include Awareness!!! And Awareness is the starting point!!!!!!!
How utterly remiss of me.
When I first began writing on the subject of personal development, Awareness was my hot topic. And here I was, leaving out the most fundamental building block of the whole process of taking responsibility for becoming a happier person. So I thought to myself, I better put that right as soon as I get back home.
And then when I did get home, Neale Donald Walshe sent this timely reminder:
On this day of your life, Hilda, I believe God wants you to know....that awareness is not a gift that some have and others cannot attain. Awareness is your birthright and your inheritance. You have it now.
It is not a question of whether you have it, but of whether you are using it. All human beings have the gift of Awareness. Yet not all are aware that they are Aware. When you are aware that you are Aware, your experience of Awareness shifts to a new level. That is why this is being sent to you today. You called this forth , out of your own inner Awareness. This is You, waking you up.
Today, walk in Awareness. Do so by simply choosing to do so. Allow yourself to be aware of every person's feelings, of what fits perfectly and is 'right' in every moment, of what is wanted and needed from you as a healer and a messenger Right Here, Right Now. Walk in this Awareness, and watch your life change today.
So, without further ado, let me rewind. When it comes to the A-Z of Happiness, A is for . . .
Awareness; Accepting the Present as it is; Affirmations; Attention & The Law of Attraction; Attitude
Awareness is the foundation of the points that followed, and everything else that comes under every other letter. Because without awareness, you cannot change your attitude, thoughts, beliefs or behaviours. In order to be proactive about your own happiness, you need to consciously choose your perspective and your approach to life. You need to be aware of your beliefs and your thought patterns before you can make the conscious decision to change them. And often, we are completely unaware of the subconsciously held beliefs that are sabotaging our ability to create the lives we wish for.
So, if you're going to apply any of the tips that I have outlined already, or will outline as we continue from E to Z, you're definitely going to need to tap into your self-awareness.
If you're already there, that's great! You're off to a flying start. But if you would like some tips on how to develop greater self-awareness try the following:
At the end of each day, journal about how you felt during different experiences, and what thoughts did you have immediately prior to, during and after each experience. Identify which activities you enjoyed, and what it was that you appreciated about them. Likewise, what would you prefer to leave out of your schedule and why? Pay attention to your body, and its response to the food you eat, the activity you participate in and the company you keep. Your body will always have a response of either comfort or discomfort. Start to really notice when it's experiencing discomfort (often this can be subtle and we can miss it). Then ask yourself how you can move towards greater comfort - this will move you towards your higher good, whether it's physcially, mentally, spiritually or emotionally. Identify your beliefs, values and needs. Do your beliefs serve you well? (Refer to B is for . . . for more on why this is important and what to do about it if your beliefs are limiting you). Are you honoring your own personal values (click here to download an exercise to help you identify your top 5 values)? Are you crystal clear on what your mental, physical, spiritual and emotional needs are? To be happy you need to have all your needs met, and the first step in that process is knowing exactly what they are. Make a list today... Meditate! Meditation quietens the mind and the body, and this quietening down will help with the other exercises. In fact, before doing the exercises to get clarity around your beliefs, values and needs, it would be a great help to meditate for a few minutes right before hand. But quite apart from that, people who meditate regularly begin to notice after a while that they're naturally more self-aware, along with a great many other side benefits (stay tuned to future posts to learn more).
I hope those tips help. And again, I apologise for leaving out the foundation to this whole series. I'll try to do better in future ;-)
The series so far:
Oh, awareness is such an important one! I'm glad you took the time to go back and talk about that topic because it's a great one. I really like what you've written about it here. Great stuff!
Posted by: Positively Present | July 16, 2009 at 10:40 PM
I love constant reminders to meditate. I'm aware that if I don't make an effort to do it first thing in the morning, I'll somehow leave it out. Having become aware of this, I recently started getting up 1/2 hour earlier to do it and I've found that even with 1/2 hour less sleep, I have even more energy during the day and wake up really refreshed in the morning.
Posted by: Lori | July 18, 2009 at 08:01 AM
Hi Dani,
yes it is really important. Transformation only becomes possible with awareness. Can't believe I left it out first time round!
Hi Lori,
I'm not surprised you feel refreshed with less sleep because you meditate - apparently the rest the mind and body gets during meditation is much deeper than in sleep. And like you, I now also set my alarm for half an hour earlier because I function so much better when I start the day with meditation : )
Posted by: Hilda | July 19, 2009 at 08:49 PM
Awareness is the first step to all change. Without awareness, you don't know that something needs to be changed. Awareness is a huge first step.
Posted by: Patricia - Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker | July 26, 2009 at 06:09 PM
You're so right Patricia - without awareness we cannot hope to transform our way of being in this world.
Posted by: Hilda | July 27, 2009 at 10:13 AM